16 



NOTES ON THE MAMMALS OF TASMANIA. 



By Clive E. Lord. 



(Tasmanian Museum.) 



[Received 30th July, 1918. Read 9tli September, 1918.] 



INTRODUCTION. 



It is remarkable that more attention has not been 

 paid to the Mammals of Tasmania. Many interesting 

 • species occur here, and as they a.re decreasing in number 

 every year, the following notes have been compiled in 

 order to attempt to arouse interest ere it is too late.. 

 Unless unforeseen circumstances occur, many of our 

 Mammals will share the fate of our Tasmanian Emu, and 

 become extinct. Apart from the lists compiled by Gunn 

 (1852), Krefft (1868), and Higgins and Petterd (la83), 

 there has not been a separate list of our Mammals pub- 

 lished. The foregoing lists are incomplete, and also out 

 of print. Anyone desiring general information has to 

 search through numerous descriptions of species in works 

 dealing with Australian fauna, and, if possible, select 

 the Tasmanian forms. As these are not always given in 

 full, some confusion has been caused. In order to elimin- 

 ate this, .and also toi njake a starting point for further 

 study, the accompanying list has been drawn up. Many 

 quotations are made from the British Museum Catalogues, 

 but this is necessitated owing to the fact that the Tas- 

 manian student, in the majority of cases, has not the 

 opportunity to consult a large scientific reference library. 

 If, however, he should be working on a particular species 

 he could doubtless obtain much information by working 

 from the keys given in the various British Museum Cata- 

 logues. It must also be remembered that tiie type speci- 

 mens of the majority of our animals have been carried 

 to the other side of the world. In the compilation of the 

 following notes, I must acknowledge my indebtedness to 

 Messrs. W. H. D. Le Souef and H. H. Scott for kindly 

 advice, and also to manj? works dealing with the Tasmanian 

 fauna. Although the number of works consulted was 

 large, it was by no means a complete list, as such is un- 

 obtainable in Tasmania. This is one of the disadvantages 

 a local student works under. The need for a list of our 

 Mammals has been apparent, for a considerable time, and 

 siuoh ai list has been continually asked for by nature stu- 

 dents, collectors, and others. The present work claims not 



